Many want to point at Lifetime and lay the blame at their feet, but we don’t think that’s entirely fair. The network has invested heavily in this show, fought long and hard in court to win and is still banking on it as a transformative cornerstone to their public perception as a disease-of-the-week movie channel.
It’s important to remember that Lifetime’s primary role is promotion and broadcasting of the show. They have gone above and beyond the call on their website providing fans with endless bonus features, full episode videos and a new behind the scenes program focused entirely on the models. The press reps have welcomed us lowly bloggers with open arms and have given us everything we could ever ask for to make the show more fun for fans.
The legal wranglings between NBC, Weinstein and Lifetime certainly didn’t help matters, especially in the lengthy delay that resulted getting this season on air to begin with. But the real problem lies with the production, and Lifetime does not get a free pass for its role in selecting Bunim/Murray. Here are the main issues as we see them:
- No Nina! No MK! As mentioned at the beginning, the myriad of starlets, editors and fashion wannabes that have circulated in and out of those director’s chairs have brought nothing but boring inconsistency. We miss Michael’s biting quips and Nina’s facial disdain. Their absence has also unleashed a newer, meaner Heidi that just isn’t as adorable as we are used to.
- Been there, done that challenges. This one is completely mystifying. You would think that with a new production team and a new network, original challenges must have been in the cards. But week after week brought us either recycled challenges from previous seasons (art museum, red carpet, etc.) or ones that we still haven’t figured out what the designers were supposed to create (avant-garde surf wear, anyone?).
- Casting. We have never been ones to advocate personality over ability, but it is nice to have at least a couple of off-beat artistic designers on hand for creative diversity. With Ari and Malvin eliminated so soon, we lost the opportunity for some quirky entertainment.
- Lack of fun. When Bunim/Murray were revealed as the new producers we were more worried that we would see designers in hot tubs and manufactured drama. Instead, it is almost as if they went the opposite direction fearful of showing any bit of personality at all. How did the story of the designers getting star tattoos end up on the cutting room floor?
Has this season been a disappointment for you, too? What kind of changes would you like to see to bring the franchise back to its glory days?
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